Death toll from blast, militant attack in NW Pakistan rises to 31

The death toll from a suicide bombing and subsequent militant attack in Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has risen to 31, including 17 policemen, six civilians and eight terrorists, rescue workers said Saturday.

More than 130 policemen and civilians were injured and shifted to various hospitals, Bilal Faizi, spokesperson for the state-owned Rescue 1122 service in the province, told Xinhua.

The incident occurred at about 1:15 p.m. local time (0815 GMT) in Kohat district on Friday, when a bomber rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into a mosque adjacent to the gate of the Police Lines compound before detonating it, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Inspector General of Police Zulfiqar Hameed told the media.

Following the blast, seven armed terrorists infiltrated the Police Lines premises, and one of them blew himself up near a building housing offices of the Special Branch of police, Hameed said.

Two terrorists were killed shortly after entering the premises, while four others infiltrated the building, he added.

In a statement issued Saturday, police said the clearance operation against the terrorists lasted about 21 hours, and during the operation, two terrorists were holed up on the first floor of the building and were killed in a clearance operation conducted early in the morning on the premises.

One more was killed in an exchange of fire, while another was badly burned and detonated his explosive vest, it added.

Ittihadul Mujahideen Pakistan, a faction of the militant group led by Hafiz Gul Bahadur, claimed responsibility for the attack.

The country's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the attack and expressed grief over the loss of life.

The prime minister directed authorities to expedite rescue operations and provide all possible facilities to those affected.